A Dedicated University of Minnesota Research Resource at the Minnesota State Fair
Interim Report from Year 1
Ellen W. Demerath, Ph.D., EpiCH, SPH
Logan G. Spector, Ph.D., Pediatrics, Medicine
Heather H. Nelson, Ph.D., MCC, SPH
Mindy S. Kurzer, Ph.D., CFANS
Purpose and Vision for the Driven to Discover Building
• In response to the OVPR’s call for innovative proposals to increase the University’s research infrastructure, we proposed in 2012 to:– Establish the first dedicated research facility at a state fair
in the nation for on-site research in humans during the Fair, to increase the efficiency of recruiting large numbers of community members for University research projects
– Conduct a 2-year demonstration project to assess• Investigator interest• Rate of research subject enrollment• Potential for community engagement
• In a competitive selection process, we garnered space at the state fairgrounds and established a 10-year memorandum of understanding with the State Fair corporation.
• 5,000 ft2 property• 1600 ft2 building• Electrical and optic cable
upgrades• A paid research assistant for
each project• 40 iPads for data collection• Research space for 10 studies
at a time• Lease agreement gives access
to site year-round
Driven to Discover Building1367 Cosgrove Street
Highlights of the Driven to Discover Building Demonstration Project (Year 1: 2014)
Strong University Investigator Interest– 29 projects conducted, from 10 Different Schools and Colleges
• Med School: 7• UMD: 4• CLA: 4• SPH: 3• Joint Med/SPH: 2• Nursing: 2• CFANS: 2• CEHD: 2• Social Work: 1• Law: 1• Dental: 1
– High-Throughput Subject Enrollment• Large # of individuals entered the building
– ~30,000
• Total recruitment exceeded our expectations– > 9,000 enrolled
• Average rate: 8 subjects/hour/study
Investigator satisfaction with the D2D research experience
Very Unsatisfied Unsatisfied Neutral Satisfied Very Satisfied0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
90.0%
0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
22.7%
77.3%
And, on a scale of 0-100, the average willingness to return was
91.68
0 = Absolutely not100 = Absolutely
Quotes from Driven to Discover Researchers
This was an excellent experience for the students
because they had an opportunity to engage directly with subjects in ways that they
do not usually.
Please oh please let me conduct research at the fair again! It was
easy, fun, quick. I mean, how else can I get 220 participants in
under 12 hours?
The entire event was fantastic. It was run incredibly well, everyone was so helpful, and it was one of the best organized events I have
been part of. You guys made everything so easy for us!
Amanda was fantastic! Honestly, she was so thorough, detail oriented, and on top of everything that I felt like hugging
her the first time I met her in person.
Running my study in the D2D Building was a fantastic experience.
Not only did I exceed my recruitment goals, but I made a lot
of great connections with other researchers and members of the
community who were interested in my research.
A tremendous amount of coordination and planning
occurred by D2D staff which allowed us to arrive for our shifts and focus on
our project.
We were able to collect data from a broad
section of the State's rural population which
would have been difficult to do any other way.
“Using your usual methods of recruitment, how long would it have taken you to enroll the same number of research subjects
you enrolled at the Fair?”
9.1%
31.8%
4.5%13.6%
9.1%
9.1%
22.7%
Less than 1 month1-6 months7-11 months1 year1-3 yearsNot possible in another venueUnsure
Suggestions for Improvements fromDriven to Discover Researchers
Having air conditioning would be great!
I wish the other U of MN buildings on the state fair
grounds had better knowledge of the D2D
building.
The building was small and it leaked when it rained -- my wishful thinking is that the
university will acknowledge the importance of this building and
work with the state fair to expand.
We didn't realize the building would have uneven flooring which initially
created some difficulty with our gait mat but we were able to rearrange so the
mat was on even flooring.
Although we did not receive a D2D grant we appreciated the
opportunity to have our study in the D2D building. Wish there
were more funding opportunities.
It would be nice to have a more modern,
innovative building to match the innovation
behind our UMN research.
While the news stories during the fair were great, it would have been nice to have
more publicity prior to the fair.
Year 2 Goals (2015)
• Track Scientific Output of Users– Encourage papers, grant proposals
• Expand breadth of research– Currently most studies were AHC-based– More studies of children and youth
• Increase the number of studies and participants
Some Lessons Learned
• Types of studies– Those with narrow inclusion/exclusion criteria will not be
efficient
– Can recruit large numbers of particular groups (e.g., rural veterans, African American men) if the protocol is engaging and recruitment methods are pro-active
• Current building has important limitations– Small, no storage, and a maximum of 10 studies at a time
can be accommodated
– No water supply / field lab space
– NOT WEATHER PROOF (rain/indoor flooding caused problems)
Sustaining the Investment• Operating costs have been clarified
– Operating costs total $150,000/year, most of which is dedicated to personnel managing the scientific operation year-round, maintaining the facility, and costs of putting on the show (rental equipment, tickets, staff) in August
• The facility is still in a development phase, and will not be self-sustaining until investigators have time to line-item usage fees (e.g., $5,000 - $10,000 per year) in their grant proposals.
• D2D needs a pass-through business structure (i.e. ISO) and a longer-term commitment before NIH or other grants will come to fruition.
• A new building would increase the number of studies that can use the space, and raise the caliber of the science that can be conducted
Thank you
additional informational slides follow…..
Age Distribution of D2D Participants
0 to 9 10 to 19 20 to 29 30 to 39 40 to 49 50 to 59 60 to 69 70 to 79 80 and above0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
5.9%
18.6%
15.3%
10.4%
14.1%
18.1%
13.6%
3.6%
0.3%
Racial Comparison of Driven to Discover Participants to the 2013 Minnesota Census Data
American Indian Asian Black Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
White Multiracial Other0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
90.0%
0.8%2.8%
7.2%
0.0%
85.9%
0.8%2.4%1.3%
4.5% 5.7%
0.1%
86.1%
2.3%0.0%
D2DMN 2013 Census
1.1%
9.0%
6.3%
16.4%
46.7%
20.4%
Education Level for Driven to Discover Participants over 18
Years of Age
Some High SchoolHigh School diploma or GEDAssociate's degreeSome collegeCollege degreeGraduate degree
2.0%
29.6%
30.7%
37.7%
Education Level for Minnesota State Fair Attendees
Some High SchoolHigh School diploma or GEDSome collegeCollege Degree or More
StudyFinder Kiosk and Website
• Debuted at MN State Fair, 2014• First-if-its-kind website and kiosk to facilitate public
involvement in U research• Features engaging video stories of research
participants • Mounted IPads allow users to browse for study
opportunities.
StudyFinder Kiosk and Website: MN State Fair 2014
• ~ 4,800 people reached by StudyFinder• ~ 1,065 user sessions on the StudyFinder• ~ 676 user sessions on personal computers
and devices• Website users increased after the State Fair as
compared to before the Fair by ~3 fold